Koala Keith
by Griffin Stone
Summary: When the paladins get tired, they lean or go to bed. Except for Keith. Keith just clings to the nearest available object. Or person. It all starts with a swivel chair, and goes downhill from there. Especially when the team learns that it isn't just Keith; it's a Galra thing.
1. The Swivel Chair

**A/N: What's this? Another story when I already have five others going? Yep. Long story short, I've gotten way too stressed over those other multi-chapter stories and need a break. So, fluffy Keith to the rescue!**

 **This was going to be posted as a one-shot, but I decided to break up the different scenarios into chapters. Each one will be small, but hopefully make you laugh.**

* * *

It all started with a swivel chair.

The team had finished a long, hard mission to end a long, hard movement. Allura's scans showed that there was no Galra nearby, so the team went to the lounge to try and relax for a little bit.

Shiro slouched in the middle of the couch, eyes closed. Keith dragged a swivel chair from who-knew-where and sat backwards with his arms on the backrest. Pidge sprawled out in the middle of the floor. Hunk tripped over her and face-planted the couch, but didn't bother moving from his position. Lance, surprisingly, at least attempted to remain upright, but it wasn't long before he slumped over with his elbow resting on the arm of the couch. Even Allura, tired from the wormholes she had been making, sat on the couch with her head cocked back to rest on the back of the couch.

Coran, the only one somehow with any energy, stood beside Pidge and scanned the exhausted team. After a long dobosh in which Hunk started to snore, he decided to try something.

"We're under attack!"

Shiro leaped to his feet but, disoriented, tripped right over Pidge and crashed into Allura as she did the same. Pidge thrashed when she got kicked from opposite directions, and Coran quickly pulled her out of the way before she was squashed. Hunk twitched, and Lance threw his arms in the air with a surrendering yell. Keith didn't move.

When the team finally sorted themselves out, it didn't take them long to realize it had been a false alarm. They turned to Coran with identical glares.

"Not. Funny. Man," Lance growled, flopping back onto the couch.

"I was just going to suggest that everyone go to bed," Coran said mildly. "However, since my attempts yesterday ended with everyone insisting they were awake, I decided to show you all how much you need rest."

Pidge actually snarled at Coran. Shiro half-heartedly held her back until she gave up after a very brief struggle.

"Coran is right," Shiro said with a yawn. "We're all helpless like this. But we can't all rest at-"

"Yes, you can," Coran said. "I am actually wide awake, and I am more than capable at watching the scanners while you sleep."

Everyone blinked at Coran, unused to him using such a firm tone, but they were all in silent agreement. They started to shuffle toward the door, then realized that Keith was still in the chair. His arms were crossed with his chin resting on them, and his eyes were closed.

"Keith?" Shiro asked.

He stepped closer and gently touched his shoulder. The other paladins winced, expecting Keith to snap awake and very possibly stab Shiro.

But Keith didn't move.

Shiro grinned, then turned back to the others. "Let's go."

"Um. We can't leave him like that," Hunk said.

"Good luck getting him off of the chair," Shiro said with a chuckle.

Hunk stepped back, not wanting to die that day. Whether it was plain mischief or sleep deprivation, Lance stepped forward. He walked up to Keith and gave him a very hard shove, then leaped back.

Keith still didn't move.

"Are you kidding me?" Lance asked, circling Keith. "He can't really be asleep. Keith! Hey, Keith!"

"Don't bother," Shiro said. "He's out for the count."

Pidge dared to poke Keith. "Huh. He didn't get hurt or something, did he?"

"No. Once Keith gets to a certain level of exhaustion, this happens," Shiro said.

"We can't really leave him there, can we?" Allura asked.

"I've never been able to move him when he is like that," Shiro said "Although, maybe with more hands…"

The paladins positioned themselves around Keith and each took a limb. If asked, they would have admitted that it was kind of pointless to move Keith since he seemed comfortable enough and it had happened before.

But it wasn't going to stop them from trying.

Hunk and Pidge tugged at Keith's feet, which were planted so firmly on the floor that they might as well have been part of the ship. Even when they teamed up on one leg and pulled for all their worth. Shiro and Lance had the same result on Keith's arms.

After fifteen doboshes of trying, the paladins gave up one at a time and stared at Keith, who slept on obliviously.

Lance wearily pulled out Pidge's phone-like device and snapped a picture of Keith before turning and slumping away. Hunk and Pidge were right behind him; Allura had long since abandoned watching the efforts. Shiro shook his head and left. Coran followed soon after, but not before throwing a blanket over Keith and dimming the lights.

Keith was gone from the lounge the next morning and denied all claims of what had happened, even with Lance's photo proof.


	2. Full Koala

It happened a couple other times, mainly with the swivel chair but once with a lounge cushion. The team was already thinking that Keith would never live it down, when it went a step further.

* * *

No one really knew what had caused it. It had been a boring movement, and the whole team had been listless. No one noticed at first, but Keith had been training a lot with all the free time.

Shiro found him in the training room late one evening. With Pidge's help in checking the security footage, he discovered that Keith had been there all quintant. Keith had then been dragged to the lounge to relax with the rest of the team.

Shiro had to smile at Keith's annoyed expression when he was forced to stay put. The boy's arms were tightly crossed and Lance's attempts to get him into a game of chess were steadfastly ignored. Lance finally gave up and started a game with Hunk.

After a few vargas, Shiro was about to start herding the team toward their rooms, when he felt a slight weight on his shoulder. He turned his head and raised an eyebrow upon seeing that Keith had leaned his head on his shoulder.

"Tired?" Shiro murmured.

Keith grunted. He blinked slowly at Shiro, half asleep already. Shiro chuckled and shifted to get his arm behind Keith back, when Keith turned toward him. Before Shiro could move, Keith latched his arms around Shiro's middle.

Of course, Lance noticed instantly.

"Oh, look at Keith!" Lance squealed, scrambling to his feet. "He's like a little koala bear!"

Shiro glanced away from Keith. "A koala bear?"

"He's right!" Pidge said with a giggle. "Come on, Shiro, stand up!"

"I don't-"

"Just try it! Worst case scenario, Keith lets go and stays on the couch!"

Shiro sighed, but did as Pidge suggested. He fully expected Keith to slip off and probably wake up.

He didn't.

With a tiny grumble, Keith's hold switched to over Shiro's shoulders and tightened. His legs curled forward to wrap around Shiro's left leg. Shiro stood in front of the couch with Keith's entire body clinging to him.

Silence.

Lance broke it with a strangled squeal. "Just. Look. At. Him!"

"He's gone full koala!" Pidge cackled.

"How is that-" Hunk couldn't even finish at the ridiculous sight.

"Guys…" Shiro said with a sigh. "Help me get him off."

It was several doboshes before the younger paladins got themselves under control enough to help. Hunk was the first one to take pity on the eldest paladin.

Between Shiro and Hunk, they managed to pry one of Keith's arms free. But as soon as they let go to get the other one, it returned to its former position. It happened a couple more times before Shiro turned his head toward the still laughing blue and green paladins.

"Lance. Pidge. Could you…?"

"Come on, Pidge," Lance snickered. "Let's help get our little koala to bed."

But even with the extra help, Shiro just couldn't get free. It took two paladins to get a limb free and hold it, so there weren't enough hands to get Keith entirely off at once.

"Maybe we could get Coran and Allura," Pidge suggested. She grunted as her and Lance's hold on Keith's arms started to slide. "Then we could get all but one limb off, and he'd have to let go!"

"Wait a tick." Lance let go of Keith, making Pidge yelp as she had to quickly retract her hands. "Once we get Keith off of Shiro, what if he grabs onto someone else?"

Everyone stared at Lance with dawning realization.

"What about a cushion?" Pidge said. "If we stuck it between him and Shiro, maybe he'd accept it as a surrogate cuddle buddy."

Lance and Hunk snorted at Pidge's word choice, while Shiro gave her an unimpressed frown.

"There's no harm in trying," Shiro said with a sigh.

Hunk grabbed a cushion and stood ready. Lance and Pidge took Keith's arm again and pulled. Shiro pushed back on Keith, who must have tightened his hold at some point, because it took several doboshes to get the one arm free. Shiro pushed harder, and his other arm slipped.

"Hunk, now!" Shiro gasped.

Hunk shoved the cushion between Keith and Shiro, then Lance and Pidge let go. Keith sleepily reached for Shiro and his arms wrapped around the cushion.

Keith's face pursed in a frown. The team froze, mind scrambling for an explanation if Keith woke up.

After a dobosh, Keith gave a heavy sigh and released Shiro with his legs. Everyone grunted in alarm. Hunk and Lance barely managed to catch Keith, then laid him carefully on the ground.

Shiro felt kind of bad when he looked down at Keith. While the boy hadn't awoken, his expression was slightly distressed as if upset about losing a warm body to hold onto.

"Aw, he's pouting," Lance cooed, taking a picture.

Shiro shook his head, then something occurred to him.

"Lance. You didn't take any pictures when Keith was still… attached to me, did you?"

Shiro barely had time to register Lance's wicked grin before the boy was on his feet and bolting out the door.

"Lance, you-"

Shiro gave up when Lance was out of sight. Ignoring Pidge's smirk and Hunk's chuckling, Shiro scooped up Keith with his cushion. Keith needed to be put to bed.

Then Shiro could track down that phone.


	3. You Say Kola, I Say Koala

**A/N: This chapter takes the story from kinda kooky to totally bonkers.**

 **I made this a "Regris lives" AU, because I love writing him as Keith's Blade buddy.**

 **Takes place at some time around The Voltron Show.**

* * *

Keith was coming for a visit.

The team was excited for the former paladin's return, no matter how short. Kolivan had contacted the team after the last Coalition rally, briefly explaining that Keith had been working hard for the last few movements and needed a rest.

They found it odd that Kolivan, whose harsh leadership seemed to imply that the Blades got very little free time, would insist that Keith stop by for a visit. Because, as straightforward as Kolivan had been, he had been very clear that the team not let Keith return for at least three quintants.

The paladins and Coran gathered in the hanger as the Blade ship flew in and landed. The ramp lowered and the team found themselves facing a Blade that was familiar, but it wasn't Keith.

"Regris," Allura said, trying to subtly look past him. "I didn't know that you were visiting as well."

"Kolivan insisted," Regris said, not sounding upset about it. "Keith was in no condition to fly."

The team tensed.

"What happened?" Shiro asked. "Is he hurt? Where is he?"

"Nothing and no." Regris jutted a thumb over his shoulder. "He is right here."

The team then noticed the armored arms hooked over Regris' shoulders with the hands laced together under his chin. They had mistaken them as pieces of Regris' own armor in their distraction.

When Regris turned, however, the source became clear: Keith.

Keith's arms were slung over Regris' head, rather loose compared to his normal death-grip. His legs curled beneath him, somehow finding a grip in Regris' armor. He had his face tucked into the back of Regris' hood.

Keith's going koala -as the tendency had been named after he first did it to Shiro- was fairly rare as it was, but him doing it to a person was even more rare. He had done it twice more to Shiro and once to Hunk after a particularly tricky mission had apparently left him too exhausted to find either his bed or Shiro first.

The team knew that the Blades tended to be stand-offish, so they were startled that Regris didn't seem too concerned about Keith's condition or his position.

"Do you need help getting him off?" Shiro finally asked, the first one to shake off his shock.

Regris studied Shiro for a tick before shaking his head. "Where is your carrier?"

"Carrier?" Shiro repeated blankly. "Do you mean a stretcher?"

Another few ticks of silence filled the room. The paladins unconsciously shrunk back when Regris studied them.

"Have you not seen Keith do this before?" Regris finally asked.

"He has," Shiro said. "Just not usually to another person."

"I see. And when he does do it to one of you?"

"We pry him off and give him a pillow," Lance said, too cheerfully as Regris' tone had set him on edge.

Regris turned his masked face toward Lance. Despite not being able to see his face, the team felt as though Regris was judging them.

Regris shook his head. "No wonder he did it on his first night in the dorms."

"Um… What is Keith doing?" Allura asked tentatively.

"He needed to kola."

A beat of silence followed before Lance's, "What? Koala?"

"No, kola."

"I think we're saying the same thing!"

Regris sighed. "I suppose that humans and Alteans do not kola, so I won't judge."

"Great!" Hunk said. "Um… could you explain what it is, then?"

"It is an instinctive habit from when Galra are young. As there isn't always a safe place for the children to stay, they can often be carried in battle by their parents. We call it kola."

Pidge nudged Lance. "It's 'kola.'"

Lance huffed at her. "Close enough."

Regris went on, "Kolaing becomes unnecessary when they are old enough to fight for themselves, but even adult Galra do it on occasion."

"I thought he was just too tired to think," Hunk said.

"He does sleep much deeper when he's… kolaing," Shiro said.

Regris nodded. "We will do it if we are tired enough and comfortable with our surroundings. Sometimes, it is when we need to be comforted."

"Like the night that he left Team Voltron to join the Blades," Allura said in realization.

Regris nodded again. "Correct."

"So, it's best to just leave Keith when he does that?" Shiro asked, feeling guilty for the times that the team had pried Keith off of one of them and given him a pillow.

"He will be calmer when he wakes up if we let him kola for as long as he needs," Regris said.

"Right." Now Shiro felt _really_ bad.

"How is he staying there?" Pidge asked, circling Regris. "He is barely hanging on."

"We have carriers for times like this."

Regris pointed. When Pidge leaned closer she realized that there was a frame attached to the back of Regris' armor. A hook in the frame held onto the front of Keith's armor. Keith's legs were coiled around two poles at the bottom of the frame, and his feet rested on small platforms.

After a tick, Hunk said, "We need to get one of those."

* * *

Several vargas passed, in which the team gave Regris a tour of the Castle and reviewed information that he had brought.

No one noticed when Keith woke up, only that they turned around at some point and Keith was standing beside Regris.

"What?" Keith asked when the team stared at him for several ticks. "Kolivan said I needed a break."

Shiro just blinked and nodded, then resumed the data scans. Allura and Hunk were quick to turn away, too embarrassed by their oblivion in the past to tease. Pidge smirked at Keith. Lance face-palmed as he realize that he had forgotten his photo proof for once.

* * *

 **A/N: In case anyone is wondering... yes, even Kolivan kolas. XD**


	4. Sleeping In

**A/N: Takes place soon after the beginning of season seven.**

* * *

"Guys, wake up!"

Pidge squawked and sat bolt upright. She squinted blearily across Green's cluttered hold. The only living things in the room besides her was her puffballs staring at her and, last time she checked, they couldn't talk.

"Aw, Hunk, what is it?" Lance's sleepy voice asked, reminding Pidge of the intercoms in each lion.

"Keith didn't wake us up," Hunk answered, also over the intercom.

There was a brief silence, then Allura spoke up. "So, you chose to?"

"Keith _always_ wakes us up, two vargas ago!"

That caught Pidge's attention. She turned her eyes to her makeshift clock, and saw it was roughly eight in the morning.

"Maybe he's letting us sleep in?" Lance said, voice muffled like he had his face in his pillow.

"He wouldn't," Shiro said.

Groans of agreement sounded over the comms. Pidge slid out of bed and ran to the cockpit. Green rumbled to her, sounding unconcerned, as Pidge climbed into her seat.

On the console, views of Yellow and Red's cockpits. Hunk, with Kaltenecker's head hanging over one shoulder and the mice on the other, was wide-eyed. Lance stumbled for his seat, with Shiro worriedly eyeing him as he bumped through the cockpit to sit. After a moment, Blue's cockpit joined, where Coran and Romelle stood behind Allura. Black's didn't appear, but the Black Lion was still flying steadily ahead of the group.

"The lions aren't acting like anything is wrong," Pidge reported. "And Black is right there."

"Keith?" Shiro said. He leaned closer to the console and frowned. "Huh. No response. Pidge, can you open a link to Black's cockpit?"

"You don't think anything happened, do you?" Pidge asked, worried.

"I doubt it. Maybe he did just sleep in."

"Him and Krolia?" Lance asked drily. "Those two take too much pleasure in waking us up to sleep in."

The team mumbled in agreement at that. For all they knew, this was another training situation to see how the team would respond to being cut off from Keith.

Pidge started to type, when a view of inside Black opened up without her doing anything. Pidge frowned. Keith and Krolia were out of sight, and the angle of the camera was wrong.

"What is it coming from?" Shiro asked, having noticed the angle as well.

A furry face popped into view, startling the paladins before they recognized it to be Keith's space wolf.

"Hey, where's Keith?" Pidge tried asking the wolf.

"Pidge, you do realize that he can't talk, right?" Lance teased.

The wolf sniffed the camera, then lifted a paw and smacked it. The view spun wildly, then jarred to a stop. The view was then upside-down and rocked slowly.

"I think it's Keith's helmet," Allura realized.

"That's how he can tell us!" Hunk exclaimed. "If he can carry the helmet to wherever Keith is, we can see what is wrong!"

Before anyone could try to get the wolf to understand what they wanted, the wolf sniffed around the camera, then moved out of sight. After a moment, the camera was suddenly lifted and moved forward.

"Ugh, I can't look," Hunk moaned as the camera swung back and forth with the wolf's steps.

After a few ticks, the view swung wildly, then settled down to give an aerial perspective. The team blinked as the view became clear.

Keith was curled up against Krolia's chest. His arms were wrapped around her middle, and his face was tucked into her shoulder.

But that wasn't what had them staring.

Everyone knew that Keith kolaed. While he hadn't done it since returning to be the black paladin, Lance held photo proof. Thanks to Regris, the team knew that it was just a Galra thing that they did for comfort.

But that didn't mean that seeing Keith get kolaed _back_ was any less surprising.

Krolia had her eyes closed and appeared more relaxed than the team thought possible for the edgy Galra. She had her body spooned around Keith's, with their legs twined together. Her face was turned downward into Keith hair.

Unsurprisingly, it was Lance who broke the silence with his dying-engine squeal sound. Half the team automatically shushed him.

"Just look at them!" Lance went on anyway. There was the unmistakable click of a camera.

"You're going to wake them up!" Hunk said nervously.

"We've been yelling at them for the last five doboshes," Allura pointed out.

"Yeah, if anything was going to wake them up-" Pidge stopped as Krolia's eyes suddenly opened.

"Oh, quiz-" was all Pidge heard from Lance before she slapped off the audio.

Pidge held her breath as Krolia blinked, even though she knew it didn't matter.

Krolia blinked a couple times before her she gave what appeared to be a massive sigh, fluttering Keith's hair with her breath. She shifted a bit and raised a hand to Keith's face. She gently brushed his hair aside and her mouth moved silently.

Keith's face clenched and he squirmed closer to Krolia, before she nudged him away. She reached down to tip Keith's head up. Keith slowly opened his eyes with a heavy frown.

Krolia appeared to chuckle as she loosened herself and sat up on her elbow. Keith shook his head and blinked hard a couple times before turning his sleepy face up.

In an instant, Keith's expression turned to alarm. Krolia quickly looked up, and Pidge realized they were staring right at the camera.

Krolia's arm flashed up. The view swung, then went black.

Pidge stared at the black screen, then slowly turned on the com to the Red Lion.

"Tell me that you were recording that," Pidge said.

Lance smirked. "Sending it now."


	5. Kola or Cuddle?

**A/N: I'm going to mark this story as complete for now, but there is still the possibility of this story getting revived at some point in the future. Hope you all enjoyed!**

* * *

Keith couldn't sleep.

One in the morning according to the glowing numbers of the clock. He had slept restlessly for a couple hours, then spent the rest of the time staring at the clock.

Across the hospital room, Krolia was asleep in one of the chairs. How he couldn't sleep in the comfortable bed when is mother was sleeping upright in a hard hospital chair, confused Keith and frustrated him more than it should.

He needed to check the team, Keith finally decided. He remembered how Shiro had suffered from the inability to sleep because he worried about the team. Apparently, it was inherent to leadership.

Quietly so as to not wake Krolia, who he knew had been short on sleep during his recovery, Keith pushed his blankets to the side and slid out of bed. He groaned softly; his still recovering body protesting at motion, but he persisted.

Keith peeked outside the door, and saw no staff in sight. He grinned and tip-toed out and down the hall until he reached Hunk's door.

Surprisingly, Hunk was awake and sitting up. His parents and Shay were curled up on cots, asleep, but Hunk was watching the door when Keith peered in.

"Can't sleep?" Hunk whispered.

Keith shook his head. "You?"

"Nope."

Lance's head abruptly popped up from beside Hunk's bed. Keith jerked back and had to clamp his hand to his mouth to hold in a shout.

"Me, neither," Lance said, unconcerned about the mini-heart attack he had just given Keith. "I came here to give Hunk some company."

"What are you even doing out of bed?" Keith hissed, Lance having been the slowest to recover of the team.

"You guys were up. Sixth sense," Lance said smugly.

Keith stared at Lance, then shook his head. He was about to turn away when Lance gave a whisper-shout.

"Hey! I've got an idea!"

Against his better judgement, Keith stopped and looked back. Lance had a beaming grin on his face.

"It's been too long since we had a paladin pile," Lance said.

"What? No, we… we should just go back to bed," Keith said with a frown. For some reason, a paladin pile _did_ sound pretty nice…

Lance smirked at Keith's wistful expression. "Come on. We'll even let you kola one of us."

"I don't know what you are talking about!" Keith hissed.

Hunk snickered. "You do so, and I know you want it." Without giving Keith a chance to protest again, Hunk tossed his blankets to the side. "Let's go. I'll grab Pidge, Lance gets Allura, and Keith, do you think Shiro would want in?"

Keith gave up and grinned. "I'm sure he will."

* * *

Lance was missing and Veronica was ready to punch someone. They were in a _hospital_ and her little brother -who was a _patient_ \- was gone! The morning nurses didn't remember seeing him, and neither had anyone else.

Veronica ran into Matt in her stomping search, and learned Pidge was gone as well. Then Coran and Shay had come rushing out with news of missing paladins. Veronica hadn't thought it could be worse, when the MFE pilots reported that _Shiro_ was missing!

"How can all the paladins and Shiro just disappear?" Veronica demanded. The group that had gathered all shrugged.

"We are missing one, actually," Lief said.

Rizavi gave her an "are you crazy?" look. "We're missing them all."

Lief glanced at her. "No one has reported Keith as missing."

"If Keith was gone, Krolia would have made it known by now," Coran said knowledgeably.

"It wouldn't hurt to check," Matt said, fidgeting.

Veronica led the way to Keith's room. The door was open, so she marched right in. Krolia, sitting on one of the chairs, looked up. Keith's bed was empty.

"Krolia, all the-"

"Hush!" Krolia said sharply.

Veronica jerked to a stop, and everyone narrowly avoided crashing into her.

Krolia's harsh expression softened and she stood, beckoning them to come closer. They cautiously stepped into the room and moved to see the other side of the bed, where Krolia was pointing. Instantly, everyone's panic vanished.

Shiro and the paladins had cuddled together in a pile on the floor. Blankets and pillows were scattered under them, but none of them seemed too concerned by the lack of padding.

Keith was in the center of the pile, going full-out kola on Pidge, though one arm was behind his body. The girl's face was scrunched almost in protest as Keith held her like an oversized teddy bear. Shiro laid on Pidge's other side, curled around the pair with his arm draped across them and his floating arm was missing. Lance, Keith's right hand man, was laying on Keith's right arm that was laying awkwardly behind him. Lance's back was to Keith's, and he and Allura had their foreheads against each other. Their arms were laced together and their legs kicked out from the pile. Shiro's prosthetic was actually at Allura's back, almost like he was hugging the whole team. Hunk was stretched out at everyone's head, his belly becoming a pillow for Allura, Lance, and Keith, while Shiro's head was on his knees.

"What- How- When-" Veronica stammered.

"I think everyone needed a good kola," Krolia said.

Matt, one of the few outside the paladins who knew the term, raised an eyebrow. "Humans don't kola, though."

"No, but we cuddle."

Everyone jumped at Lance's voice. Everyone looked, but the red paladin's eyes were shut. Everyone was silent until Veronica spoke.

"You all heard Lance speak, right?"

"Yes," Hunk responded for them, making the group start again. "He did."

"Are you guys awake or not?" Veronica asked.

Shiro's flesh hand moved up to his lips in a shushing gesture. His eyes opened to give the group a hard look.

"Don't wake Keith up, okay?" Shiro said firmly. "We finally got him to sleep."

Matt snickered into his hand and playfully saluted. Shiro nodded and closed his eyes. He laid his arm back down.

"So…" Veronica whispered. "Do we leave now?"

"Yes," Allura muttered.

"No, stay," Pidge moaned. "I need help."

Shiro shushed her and gently tapped her shoulder. Pidge pouted deeper and sighed. Veronica had to grin at Pidge.

Then Keith shifted.

Everyone just froze. A few panicked at the slight movement. Lance and Shiro opened their eyes.

Keith groaned in his sleep and writhed. Lance lifted his body, letting Keith pull his arm back and move it in front of him. He tucked his freed arm around Pidge and hugged her closer, then settled down.

When Keith didn't move anymore, everyone relaxed. Lance and Shiro's eyes closed.

Matt suddenly remembered something. "Hey, Pidge said that Lance always takes pictures of Keith kolaing on his phone."

Pidge's eyes snapped open and she hissed, "Don't you dare."

"Lance's phone is beside his bed," Veronica supplied.

Matt darted from the room. Pidge's mouth opened in protests that she didn't dare voice for fear of waking Keith. Shiro chuckled and some of the group had to leave before they laughed aloud.

And, in the midst of it all, Keith slept on.


	6. First Night Jitters

**A/N: Regris mentioned it, so I had to write it. XD**

* * *

Regris had heard of the recruit, Keith. He'd shown up a few pheobs ago with a Marmoran blade, claiming it had come from his mother. Despite looking far from Galra, he had managed to unlock the blade. After that, he didn't join the Blades like all recruits did. He seemed to jump back-and-forth between the Blades and the paladins of Voltron. It all sounded unnecessary to Regris; why didn't he stay with the Blades?

Whatever the reason, Regris didn't meet Keith face-to-face until he arrived at the base with word that he was staying for real. Kolivan told Regris that Keith would be in the same dorm as him, and left the recruit in Regris' care.

Regris wasn't impressed. Sure, he was stubborn, tough, and fierce -all Blades had to be. But he was a head shorter than all the other Blades, had no claws, horns, or spikes, had flat teeth, and -most importantly- no tail!

But, orders were orders. Regris gestured for Keith to follow him, then walked away without waiting. Soft footsteps indicated that Keith was following.

After a dobosh, Regris glanced over his shoulder. The small recruit had his head ducked and arms crossed to hide his hands in his armor. He was much quieter and sedate than the stories had made him out to be.

Regris shrugged it off. Stories were always so exaggerated.

* * *

"This is our dorm."

Regris stepped into the room that he shared with fifteen other Blades of Marmora. Bunks were stacked against the walls. There were a few shelves holding spare helmets and armor. There were a couple chairs scattered around the room. Boxes under the beds held the Blades' scant belongings.

Speaking of belongings…

"Where are your personal belongings?" Regris asked.

Keith shook his head. "Didn't bring any."

Regris hummed. "Just as well. The Blades of Marmora can't build up clutter. It's only more things to move if we had to evacuate."

Keith nodded.

Regris waited for more, but Keith simply stood there. Eventually, Regris walked out the door.

"Come, we have training."

* * *

By the end of the quintant, Regris had to admit that Keith had skills. While he wasn't as strong or big as the others, his speed and agility made up for it. Nobody could lay a finger or blade on the swift little recruit.

Keith grew more enthusiastic in training. His face held an easy grin as he evaded Regris' claws and tail. He seemed to take great joy in sliding under Regris' legs and tugging on his tail.

He also had excellent instincts. He somehow knew when Vrek slid into the fight, and easily adjusted to a new style to combat the two older Blades.

Keith was quickly accepted into the Blades once his skills became clear. He was hardy and tough, and Regris already could tell that he could trust Keith to watch his back.

Keith didn't engage in the banter that the Blades started up once training was over. Regris, Keith, and their dorm companions returned to their dorm and shed their armor.

"Put your stuff here," Regris told Keith, using his tail to pull out the empty box under their bunk.

Keith silently took off his armor and put it away. He stood awkwardly beside the bunk, looking smaller than ever in his plain gray shirt and oversized pants that needed a belt.

"Get some sleep," Regris advised. "Kolivan wakes us up at early vargas to train again."

Keith silently followed the others' example of climbing into bed. Considering the top bunk was over Keith's head, he made easy work of climbing up the bedpost and into his bunk.

Regris got into his lower bunk. He turned to the wall, listening to Keith restlessly shuffle around in the bed. He finally fell still, but Regris could tell by his breathing that he was still awake.

Regris figured he was just having a hard time sleeping in an unfamiliar place. It wasn't unusual for new recruits, although he'd have to get over it for longer missions.

He was just drifting off when Keith started moving again. Feet landed softly on the floor, prompting Regris to roll over. Keith jumped when he saw that Regris had turned to him.

"I didn't mean to wake you," Keith whispered.

"I was already awake," Regris responded. He sat up. "What is the matter?"

"Nothing. I just can't sleep."

Regris studied Keith. He had his arms wrapped around himself again, like he was hugging himself. His eyes were distant and tired.

Regris recognized the posture, but he was surprised to see it in such a new recruit. He would have thought that the issue would have been dealt with before Keith arrived. Regardless, Regris wasn't going to leave him like that.

"Come here," Regris said, rolling so that his back was to Keith again.

"What?"

"Don't try to hide it. I see you want to kola," Regris said. "No need to be embarrassed."

Keith didn't say anything else and Regris didn't push him. After a few ticks, there was a heavy sigh, then the mattress shifted as Keith crawled up. Scrawny arms wrapped around his middle.

Regris turned his head and smiled. Keith's eyes were already closed and his breath was evening out.

Regris shook his head, feeling a surge of protectiveness for the little recruit. He just hoped that Keith didn't have to kola for too long. It would be interesting to explain why the Blades newest recruit was kolaing during training in the morning.


End file.
